Friday, September 22, 2017

Project Runway: Models are Clients

This one was hard. Heidi came out to tell the designers their next challenge and in a completely natural and not at all staged entirely for the cameras moment, a producer interrupts to tell Heidi that Tim is blowing up Heidi's phone with selfies. So, basically, the designers discover the models are their clients this week and they will need to come up with a non-work outfit for their model that also selfies well.

There's an interesting shift in the way that Shawn and Claire are edited this week. I generally think you get what you get when you sign up for a reality competition show, but I feel like the producers aren't as settled on their proposed viewpoint of Shawn and Claire so the fingerprints are a little more obvious. We're distilling 2-3 days into an hour, and even eliminating the time that they are sleeping that's still a lot. But this week, a few of the designers note that it is less that Shawn and Claire help each other a lot and more that Shawn asks Claire for help and critique a lot.

Kenya, who is feeling very unsettled after Tim suggests that the matching vest and pants on her slim model might make one think stringbean, says she doesn't have a sister on the show she can ask. She appears to get some help from Amy, but a lot of it seems to be the some look at this and tell me I'm not crazy help, which we all need sometimes. But Kenya did hit on an important point. The designers can help each other. But arriving with someone who has to go to Thansksgiving dinner with you is different. It's much easier to ask them. And also, much harder to say no.

I discovered when I became a telecommuter no one wandered by my desk and saw me muttering at the screen and asked if I needed help. I couldn't stop by someone's cube after I got more tea from the break room. I had to actually call, or email, and say, I can't figure this out. Alternatively you often find people start asking you questions when you become a person who reliably understands things, but there are days when the things I've actually been tasked with have to take priority over assisting fellow co-workers hit their own deadlines. It's a tricky balance - for Shawn, for Claire, and for others who are thinking well I'd be done by now if someone had fixed my pants for me.

While Brendan makes very much the same thing, he is safe but we're going to mention that Samantha, in that careful tone one adopts when one is simply saying something, notes that his is a look that references Rey in "Star Wars" and that kind of nerd chic...will provide a lot of clients for him. Also, because so many (3) models have confessed crushes on Brendan the producers ask him if he has crushes and he says, I have a girlfriend.

One to the top and bottom. Shawn is in the top, with a ruffled crop top and cropped pants. It is a better tailored version of what she's been doing (and yeah her sister made the pants) and it looks good.

Kentaro is paired up with his model who knows Japanese and he created an awesome Japanese inspired yet modern outfit that pairs a folded crop top (there were a lot of crop tops, folks) over an architectural skirt and pants that just looks great both still and walking.

Kenya is in the top. The green vest was cropped enough to tone down the dalmatian-esque print of the top, and the petal necked top, and slim pants are beautifully made.

Claire is in the bottom for an oversized sweatshirt that she says is paired with tailored shorts but who can tell, because they are so short the models butt cheeks are showing. She knew they'd want color so stuck a teal ribbon along the zipper. Nina is basically like I have seen this too many times, and it's boring, next.

Margarita went all in on her model's vision for a 90's esque bomber jacket, baggy pants, and crop top. She seems to realize on the runway that she is not in the top so mentions that she had concerns but really wanted to please her model, which was a complete surprise to her model. (We get the first and hopefully not last models backroom, and trust me, this came up.) I'd argue surprising your model on the runway is not good protocol when she returns next week.

Samantha is in the bottom for a better made version of what she made last week, but it's again black over a pattern so most of the detail is lost in still and in motion. She is wearing a version of it herself that of course shines in gold, so they tell her she keeps outshining what she made, which I'm sure is partly time, but I think she was also trying to do a more runway version, and thought that meant black.

Tim makes sure the judges know that Claire did Shawn's pants and while they have concerns, they mostly feel like if Claire hurts herself for Shawn's success, well, that's a lesson.

In what I thought had to be a misdirect, they judges say they think Margarita has more things to show them and Samantha doesn't right now. Bye Samantha, I enjoyed you a lot.